There is one easy way to turn a photo in color into a classic black-and-white. Although I must warn you that there is limited control for the final image by doing the process that I will describe here.
Open your image editor. Click on Image on the menu bar. Then click on Mode. Then click on Grayscale. Lastly, click OK. And that�s it. Like I said, control is limited with regards to the black and white features of the photo. Though what you can do is to adjust the brightness of the photo.
Ahh� this is my favorite editing tool. There was a time when I had to put texts in graphics for this graphic novel gig I did before. Anyway, this editing tool is easily spotted in the tool palette as they are represented by the letter A or the letter T. I simply click on the tool icon and click on the photo where a cursor will appear. I then type in the text, adjusting the font and size as I wish. I just click on the Move tool if I want to re-position the text.
Vector is a term used in a graphic design. Its original context is SVG which stands for Scalable Vector Graphics. Scalable means even if you try to resize it, be it smaller or larger, the quality of the image or the pixels, will not be affected or deteriorated. It will still be the same, compared to Bitmap, that when you resize it, the quality is subjected to change resulting to blurry image. Vector is applicable to Logo designs and the like because if in case you needed to resize them for future use, you are completely able to do so. The quality will remain intact. The drawback in using vector is that it is not as fine as bitmap images or photographs do. Because vectors contain selectable regions only, meaning it is limited. In vector, the other detail such as fineness or color is not enriched or vivid compared to bitmap. Though you can manually achieve it, it will require you to go on pixel by pixel editing.
If we want to enhance an image by editing there are countless ways on how to do it. This is what we call as Post-Processing. What’s next are some basic , frequently used steps to manipulate and process digital images. Just a reminder, work on a replica of an original image so if in any case you mess up, just make another copy of the original and do the editing again.
If you wish to display a photo on a website, you need to enhance it a little further. It’s good not to over do the editing, since the photo may look unnatural and it can lose some detail. You always have the “undo” command if you don’t like the change you made.
Many of us who don’t want to be constantly fiddling with the tiny buttons of today’s digital cameras often get some shots that are, well, less than perfect. Most cameras today have automatic settings, adjusting everything automatically without much need for fiddling but one good tip for good, crisp and clear shots is to ensure your camera moves less during shots especially during low light settings where the flash may not have enough power to illuminate the subject. You can choose to set the camera for low light pictures but this is more for steady subjects that don;t move a round too much. Read the rest of this entry » »
For newbies to photediting ang manipulation, here are the few basic steps you need to get familiar with:
the cropping icon
1. Cropping. This refers to removing only the part of the picture you want. Even the most basic programs like paint have them. The icon with the rectangular broken lines or the square with the extended sides stands for the cropping tool.
2. Rotating. For photos taken vertically. Even the Windows photoviewer gives the option to rotate counterclockwise or clockwise.
3. Resizing. This is where you make the picture smaller – which is what you should do when you’re only using them for the web. High resolution images are only useful if you want to print them in large formats.
4. Enhancing brightness and contrast.
This is a bit trickier, but once you find the adjustment bar in whatever software you’re using, you can darken or lighten pictures at you liesure.
Image source: www.mizjain.org
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Part 2 of Photo Ethics
There are still ethics involved in taking pictures especially those of unknown subjects in of different cultures while traveling n another country. You can’t just go shooting at random people with your camera! In this series of posts, I shall attempt in giving a few tips on how to be polite when taking photos.
If you are merely traveling and taking pictures on leisure and not on assignment (hey, you’ll never know!), payment or tipping shouldn’t be an issue. Some photographers do this. If it works for you (like if you have a budget for it), then why not? But if paying people makes you a little uncomfortable, then don’t forget to include sweets and other souvenirs in your travel bag. Children love them! I have to warn you though, give these gifts only after the fact and not as a means to get someone to agree with having his or her picture taken. Do not bribe. Remember – ethics!
Okay. This is no joke. But this happened once before.
I and a group of elderly tourists, each of us armed with our respective weapon of choice, came upon a young child in a street corner, minding a small stall where she and her mother were selling lovely beaded jewelry. Good thing that I had hung back on the edges as I had a different subject of which I wanted to take pictures. It turned out that child was quite shy and had an issue with cameras, so when this large group of people with cameras started to crowd on her, the poor frightened kid started bawling! With the language barrier and the mother coming into the scene not sooner (enough) than five minutes later, imagine how we had tried to appease the child.
But the lesson of this story is that, if possible, avoid traveling in a large group when taking pictures. If you can do it alone, it’s the best way to get good street photos.
It has happened before that some of the photos that I have taken turn up dark when I upload them in my computer. Instead of cursing myself for being too lazy to see to the lighting, I simply edit said photos and voila! Problem solved!
What I do is use the gamma control in my image editor. Most image editors have this feature in their Image or Color menus. This tool actually retains the already bright parts of the image while it brightens the dark ones. There is no prescribed setting. I suggest that you experiment with this tool first to learn how to control the right brightness for your photos.